Day after man is booked for murder, cops withdraw externment order

Shabaji Kashid, a notorious resident of Bhandup was externed last year, however he was regularly spotted in the area and was responsible for the murder of a local mandal leader

In a case of contradicting actions by the police, a day after a youth was booked for murder; the home department cancelled an externment order imposed on him in an earlier sentencing last year.

The deceased (left) Sanjay Pagare’s family protest the inaction by the Bhandup police in front of the police station. His father Suresh Pagare (first right in white) claimed that Kashid, who was externed from the city last year, carried out the murder. However, the cops refute the charges and say that Kashid was not present on the spot. Pics/Siddharth Dhadve

As per police records, the accused, Shabaji Shivaji Kashid, a resident of Tembipada area in Bhandup, was externed from the city following a lot of complaints by the locals as he used to voluntarily cause grievous hurt by using dangerous weapons. Deputy Commiss-ioner of Police Mahesh Ghurey (Zone VII) passed the order on November 9, 2012. However, despite the order, Kashid was reportedly seen loitering in the area many times and he had even appealed against the externment.

Old rivalry According to Bhandup police, Sanjay Pagare, who was the president of Sadguru Mitra Mandal, had a long-standing dispute with Kashid, who heads Durga Mata Mitra Mandal. On the night of April 7, around 8 people called Pagare near the water pipeline in Bhandup, saying that Kashid wanted to settle their dispute.

While the terms of the compromise were being negotiated, an argument broke out and Pagare was stabbed in the chest. He was rushed to a private hospital in Bhandup by friends but was declared dead before admission. According to police, Kashid wasn’t present there during the murder but he was allegedly the mastermind behind the plan. As a result, they registered a case of murder against Kashid, who is absconding.

Order cancelled A day after the murder, on April 9, the police withdrew his externment order, along with orders for two of his friends as well. “This is shocking. A prior appeal made by Kashid was sanctioned under the signature of Home Department Secretary Vineet Agarwal on April 9, 2013, which is within 48 hours of him committing the murder. Kashid is wanted for killing my son,” said Pagare’s father Suresh. He also claims that Kashid was present during the murder. “Despite being externed, we saw him in our area.

We had even complained to the Bhandup police but nobody took any action against him. Even on April 7, we came to the police station to complain about Kashid at 6.30 pm but nobody responded. Later, the murder took place on the same day,” Pagare added. Soon after the murder, Pagare’s family had also held a protest outside Bhandup police station. The police officials had promised them that they would be arresting Kashid within two days but eight days later, he is still at large.

Police speak Senior Police Inspector Shirang Nadgauda from Bhandup police station said, “We are trying to track him down but his location is not constant. He is definitely not in Mumbai.” According to Pagare’s family, the accused has been involved in illegal construction in Bhandup. “Kashid was involved in illegal construction a decade ago for which we cannot take any action now.

He has certainly stopped all this illegal construction,” Nadgauda added. On the other hand, Pagare said, “He constructed a room illegally after breaking five public toilets and sold it.” When asked about the case, Home Department Secretary Vineet Agarwal said, “I don’t remember about this particular order. I will have to check the records.”